I have received the following announcement about a China-related antitrust position with the Department of Justice in Washington, DC. Application deadline is Nov. 4th. Here's the full announcement.

The Foreign Commerce Section of the Antitrust Division has recently posted a vacancy notice seeking a highly qualified attorney to serve as a senior Attorney in its Foreign Commerce Section. This attorney would be responsible for:

Advising senior Division officials on the development and implementation of Division policy on international enforcement and cooperation issues involving China and other East Asian jurisdictions, and liaising on such issues with the Department of State and other U.S. government agencies.

>Assisting the Division's litigating sections in their matters with international aspects involving Chinese and other East Asian antitrust issues, including facilitating law enforcement and other cooperation between the Division and Chinese and East Asian antitrust agencies.

The Asia Foundation, an international non-governmental
organization committed to the development of a peaceful, prosperous, and open
Asia-Pacific region, is seeking a Chief of Party for its Justice Under Rule of
Law in Society (JURIS) project in China.
JURIS is a four-year project starting in October 2012 that aims to
enhance access to justice in order to strengthen the rule of law in selected
locations in China. JURIS will advance
citizens' rights and access to justice through two strategic entry points:
administrative law and criminal law, while identifying and tackling other
priority legal issues as the project progresses in order to respond to China's
dynamic reform environment. The COP
candidate should be a development professional with rule of law expertise,
including but not limited to: building the capacity of institutions in the
justice sector; improving access to justice; experience with legal education;
policy research and development in the justice sector; governance; public
participation; and administrative law.
Candidates must possess practical experience in managing and
implementing rule of law programs.

QUALIFICATIONS: Applicants should have a minimum of 10
years relevant experience managing multi-year, multi-million dollar governance/
rule of law projects. An advanced degree in a relevant field (law,
administrative law, political science, governance) is required. Essential skills include: experience and/or
knowledge of the legal, political, economic, administrative and socio-cultural
context of legal and institutional reform in China; familiarity with
international donor program, design principles, and methods; experience in
managing USG-funded projects including liaising and negotiating with host
country governments, USG donors, and contractors as well as budget management,
staff oversight, and the provision of legal services and technical advice;
excellent written and spoken English; strong communication (both oral and written);
consensus building; team facilitation; cultural sensitivity. Experience and
knowledge of China is strongly desired.

TO APPLY: Qualified applicants should email a cover
letter and resume to consultantssf@asiafound.org
with the subject heading Advisors in Justice Sector Reform. The Asia Foundation is an equal opportunity
employer. Women and people of color are
encouraged to apply. Application
Deadline is October 17, 2012.

This will be Ford's top person in China. The Ford Foundation does a lot of law-related work, so this may be of interest to readers of this blog. Of course, you have to be fantastically qualified. Application deadline is October 29, 2012. Here's the announcement: http://www.fordfoundation.org/employment/jobs/356

The Beijing-based IP boutique law firm ZY Partners is hiring a middle level IP associate. The preferred candidate has a US LLM degree or equivalent. PRC bar is a requirement. A science/technology background is preferred but not required. Competitive compensation.

Anyone who is interested may contact Mr. He Jing at Jing.He@zpartners.com.

I hope readers know that I'm always happy (time permitting) to post announcements of job opportunities as a service to the Chinese law community, provided the jobs have some reasonable relation to Chinese law. Here's the latest from Winkler Parterns in Taiwan:

Winkler Partners is looking for an intern for the academic 2012-2013 year from September 2012 to June 2013. The basic qualifications include good analytic, research, and English writing skills. We will try to pair you with an intern from a Taiwanese law school.

You do not need to know any Chinese although you will be able to do more if you can. You do need to be either a native speaker of English or have near-native fluency. Your duties would include curating social media sites, writing updates on legal topics, and light case work for 15-20 hours per week. This position would be ideal for someone who is already studying Chinese or an academic subject in Taiwan and is thinking about law school.

All offers are conditional on whether we can obtain authorization for you to work in Taiwan. Please send a resume and a brief writing sample to the attention of Gladys Kao (gkao@winklerpartners.com) if you are interested.

A colleague has brought the following opportunity to my attention: The USTR has advertised two attorney vacancies in the General Counsel’s office, at the GS-13 to GS-15 level. The key element appears to be the ability to read and analyze business and legal documents in Chinese. US citizenship is required, as is completion of a JD from an ABA-accredited law school and membership in a US bar.

Incumbent provides legal support for USTR personnel in connection with sectoral, bilateral, regional, and multinational trade negotiations. Incumbent also provides legal advice and represents the United States in dispute settlement proceedings convened under the World Trade Organization (WTO) and U.S. free trade agreements (FTAs), and other trade agreements. In addition, incumbent provides legal advice to USTR personnel on U.S. trade law and policy, U.S. international trade obligations, foreign government compliance with trade agreement obligations, and the application and implementation of international trade agreements under U.S. law. The position requires the ability to read and analyze business and legal documents in Chinese. Experience researching Chinese laws and measures and litigation experience are preferred. The position requires familiarity with U.S. trade laws and U.S. rights and obligations under international trade agreements, particularly WTO agreements and U.S. FTAs. In addition, the position requires familiarity with the operation of dispute settlement procedures under U.S. trade agreements and the reports of WTO and FTA dispute settlement bodies. The position requires a high level of motivation, strong interpersonal skills, and management of a demanding workload.

The Congressional-Executive Commission on China (www.cecc.gov) is offering paid internships to qualified undergraduates, graduate students, or recent graduates this coming fall in Washington, D.C. Interns must be U.S. citizens. The application deadline is July 1, 2012 for the Fall 2012 internship that runs from September to December 2012. Fall internships are part-time; interns are expected to work from 15 to 20 hours per week. See application instructions below.

CECC internships provide significant educational and professional experience for undergraduates, graduate students, or recent graduates with a background in Chinese politics, law, and society, and strong Chinese language skills.

Interns work closely with the Commission and its staff on the full array of issues concerning human rights, the rule of law, and governance in China (including criminal justice, democratic governance institutions, environmental problems, religious freedom, freedom of expression, ethnic minority rights, women's rights, etc.).

Interns perform important research support tasks (often in Chinese), attend seminars, meet Members of Congress and experts from the United States and abroad, and draft Commission analyses. Click here for CECC analysis of recent developments in the rule of law and human rights in China. Interns may also be trained to work with the Commission's Political Prisoner Database, which has been accessible by the public since its launch in November 2004 (click here to begin a search).

The CECC staff is committed to interns’ professional development, and holds regular roundtables for interns on important China-related issues.

Fall 2012 interns will be paid $10/hour. Those unable to apply for Fall 2012 internships may apply for the Spring (February-May) or Summer (June-August). Further details are available on the Commission's Web site at http://www.cecc.gov/pages/general/employ.php.

Qualifications:

Interns must be U.S. citizens.

Interns should have completed at least some China-related coursework. It is also desirable that they have some background in one or more of the specific human rights and rule of law issues in the CECC legislative mandate.

Interns should be able to read Chinese well enough to assist with research in newspapers, journals, and on Web sites. More advanced Chinese language capability would be a plus. The successful candidate for an internship often will have lived or studied in mainland China, Hong Kong, or Taiwan.

Although our interns are generally undergraduates, graduate students, or recent graduates, others are also welcome to apply.

Application Instructions for Fall 2012:

Interested applicants should send a cover letter, resume, and the names and contact information for two references, to the CECC via e-mail to Judy Wright, Director of Administration at judy.wright@mail.house.gov by July 1, 2012.Applications must be received by our office no later than 11:59 P.M. Eastern Time on July 1. Please discuss in your cover letter how your professional goals, interests, and background relate to the Commission's legislative mandate regarding human rights and the rule of law in China. No phone calls please.

I just posted a notice about the above position but hadn't read the job description. Now that I have, I really have to wonder whether anybody has thought this thing through. They are requiring someone with a Chinese lawyer certificate. This raises at least two questions:

Why? Nothing in the job requires somebody to engage in the practice of Chinese law, and indeed, anyone holding the job would probably be forbidden to do so, since practicing Chinese lawyers need to work in a properly registered law firm (or be properly registered solo practitioners). Of course, to ask for knowledge about the Chinese legal system is reasonable, and to make bar passage a proxy for such knowledge would be understandable (although inaccurate). But to have passed the bar is not the same as holding a Chinese lawyer certificate.

Holders of Chinese lawyers certificates must be Chinese nationals. Yet various aspects of the job description clearly contemplate that the successful applicant could be a US citizen.

Do they really mean to say that only Chinese nationals may apply? That's the effect of the lawyer certificate requirement, the need for which is not obvious in the first place.

I'll be happy to post any explanations or clarifications anyone wants to send me.

Starting next academic year the Leiden Institute for Area Studies (LIAS) has available 3 full-time four-year Ph.D. positions and one position for a lecturer/project coordinator in an ERC-funded project on economic stability and instability in China with particular reference to land, development and real estate.

Leiden Institute for Area Studies (LIAS) is committed to the integration of disciplinary and regional-historical perspectives. LIAS has as its aim the advancement of teaching and research of Area Studies at Leiden University and in the wider academic community. LIAS comprises the Schools of Asian Studies (SAS) and Middle Eastern Studies (SMES). Area specializations in SAS include Chinese, Japanese, Korean, South & Southeast Asian and Tibetan Studies. LIAS staff have disciplinary expertise across the humanities and the social sciences.

Starting next academic year the Leiden Institute for Area Studies (LIAS) has available 3 full-time four-year Ph.D. positions (starting 1 January 2013) and one position for a lecturer/project coordinator (starting 1 September 2012) in an ERC-funded project on economic stability and instability in China with particular reference to land, development and real estate. The project is hosted on behalf of LIAS by the Modern East Asia Research Centre (MEARC). MEARC is based in LIAS. Its mission is to support, showcase, and stimulate inter-disciplinary and inter-faculty research on modern East Asia at Leiden University. MEARC Co-Director Prof. Dr. Peter Ho has a Starting Grant for Consolidators from the European Research Council (ERC), for a project on the much-debated question of China’s economic stability from the perspective of land and real estate. The PhD candidates and lecturer/project coordinator will join the research team for the ERC project. For more info see http://www.mearc.eu/hointro.html.

Please send your application electronically indicating the vacancy number (see following pdf documents) before the deadline of Wednesday 20 June 2012 to:vacatureslias@hum.leidenuniv.nl. Interviews are planned to take place in the last week of June and/or the first week of July 2012.

Taipei law firm Winkler Partners is looking for an intern for the summer of 2012 (c. June to August).

You will need to be currently enrolled in law school for us to get work authorization.

The basic qualifications include good analytic, research, and writing skills. We will try to pair you with an intern from a Taiwanese law school.

You do not need to know any Chinese for this position although it would be helpful.

Your duties would include curating social media sites, writing updates on legal topics, and light case work for 15-20 hours per week. The pay is US$8 per hour (the same as what the Taiwanese intern will receive) and you will have to cover your own travel to and living expenses in Taipei (very roughly, about US$700 per month on a tight student budget).

This position would be ideal for a current law student who would also like to study Chinese over the summer since we are located conveniently close to both National Taiwan University (ICLP) and National Taiwan Normal University (Shida Mandarin Training Center).

Please send a resume and a brief writing sample to the attention of Gladys Kao (gkao@winklerpartners.com) if you are interested.

The Congressional-Executive Commission on China is a bipartisan commission created by Congress in 2000 to monitor and report on human rights and rule of law developments in China. The Commission consists of Senators, Members of the House of Representatives, and senior officials from the Administration. The Commission holds hearings, issues an Annual Report, and maintains a database of political prisoners in China, among other activities. For more information on the Commission, see www.cecc.gov.

The Commission is seeking professional staff members to assist in monitoring and reporting on substantive issues, including worker rights, criminal justice, freedom of residence and movement, access to justice, Xinjiang, ethnic minority rights, freedom of religion, civil society, North Korean Refugees in China, and property in China. The professional staff member will assist in assessing China's compliance or noncompliance with international human rights standards and Chinese domestic law. Successful candidates should have substantive background and/or an interest in one or more of these issue areas. Successful candidates should also possess the necessary Chinese language, English writing, and communication skills to effectively research, analyze, and explain such developments to U.S. policymakers and the broader public.

Main duties:

Monitoring and researching Chinese and English language sources (media, government, NGO) for developments relating to their issue area.

Identifying and analyzing key developments and reporting their significance orally and in writing, including through drafting sections of the Commission's Annual Reports, short analysis pieces, public statements, and press releases.

Researching political prisoner cases and creating and maintaining case records in the CECC Political Prisoner Database.

Assisting in organizing CECC public hearings and roundtables.

Staff member also may be asked to travel to U.S. cities, China or other foreign locations on official business.

Qualifications:

Candidates must be a U.S. citizen.

Very strong demonstrated ability to speak, read, write, and perform research in Chinese (Mandarin) is required.

The successful candidate will likely have worked or studied in mainland China, Taiwan, or Hong Kong.

Candidates will preferably have a law degree or a Ph.D. or M.A. in political science, history, business, economics, or other social sciences. B.A. candidates with very strong credentials will also be considered.

Strong oral and written communication skills, and the interpersonal skills and enthusiasm to work under tight deadlines and as part of a team.

Application Procedure:

Please submit a brief cover letter, resume, short writing sample (10 pages or less), and the names and contact information for two references to Judy Wright, CECC Director of Administration, via e-mail at judy.wright@mail.house.gov or via FAX at 202-226-3804. PLEASE NO PHONE CALLS. The deadline for applications is Tuesday, April 10, 2012 by 11:59 PM, EST. Applications received after this deadline will not be considered.

The Congressional-Executive Commission on China is an equal opportunity employer.

Here's a communication I recently received on what sounds like a worthy project:

The Ricci Dictionary of Chinese Law is a trilingual Chinese law dictionary project (Chinese to English / Chinese to French) which is currently ran by a team of practicing and academic lawyers with various legal backgrounds. It is part of a wider dictionary project, the “Grand Ricci” which is the reference Chinese to French dictionary and one of the world’s most complete Chinese to foreign language dictionaries (approx. 13,500 Chinese characters and more than 300,000 terms).

Our project started six years ago and recently reached an advanced stage with more than 23,000 Chinese legal terms listed and translated in both English and French.We are looking for native English speakers to proofread the English translations for these entries. Proofreading will be carried using an online editing tool (web database). Candidates must ideally possess or be in the process of completing a law degree and should be familiar with Chinese legal terms. Ability to read French would be a must. Compensation is to be discussed and will depend on the availability of the candidate.

Here's a terrific opportunity for the right person; the current program officer, Ira Belkin, is moving to New York to take up the position of Executive Director at NYU Law School's US-Asia Law Institute.

First sentence of summary description: The Program Officer will be responsible for developing, monitoring, and coordinating grant making in support of China’s national efforts at legal reform and establishing a society under the Rule of Law.